Directed by: Joseph Kosinski
Written by: Adam Horowitz, Edward Kitsis, Brian Klugman, Lee Sternthal
Cast: Jeff Bridges, Garrett Hedlund, Bruce Boxleitner, Olivia Wilde, Michael Sheen
It's been 28 years since the original TRON captured imaginations in the early 80's, and a lot has changed - both in the real world as well as that of The Grid.
Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges) disappeared many years ago after returning from his adventures shown in the original TRON. His son, Sam (Garrett Hedlund), has inherited majority control over his father's company, but has become disillusioned and holds the corporation in contempt. The company has fallen into the hands of money grubbing bureaucrats and Sam would rather have nothing to do with them; he's far more entertained by breaking into his own building and uploading the company's new software to the internet for everyone to download for free.
Alan Bradley (Bruce Boxleitner - oh Babylon 5, how I miss you!) arrives at Sam's home one evening with an interesting message; apparently he received a strange page from Flynn's old abandoned arcade. He sends Sam to investigate, and Sam finds the place just as it was in the 80's, albeit with a lot of dust. He hits the power, and Journey kicks in over the speakers and all the video games light up - including the 80's coin-up version of TRON. The film is mildly self-aware. Sam slips a quarter in for old time's sake, bumbles into finding a secret room, and through some other mishaps he manages to warp himself into the fabled land of The Grid.
Sam's introduction to the world is much the same his father's. He's picked up by the local authorities and thrown into the games, where he is forced to fight other 'programs' to the death. He eventually escapes during a light cycle game - just as Kevin Flynn escaped 28 years ago - and is helped by the mysterious Quorra (Olivia Wilde) in being reunited with his father.
This is where we finally get some exposition and begin to understand what's going on in the brave new digital world. Kevin had created another program years ago named Clu, made in his image, that was responsible for making a 'perfect' society. Unfortunately, as with many real-world ideals of 'perfection', brutal fascism was found to the most efficient government. Clu betrays his master in order to pursue his assigned goal, and is now intent on expanding his power to the 'real' world. Kevin, Sam, and Quorra are really all that are holding him back.
TRON: Legacy is a beautiful film; so much so that it deserves to be seen by sheer aesthetic alone. The digital world within it is drawn with a flawless flowing grace that reflects an upgraded version to the world first shown to us in the 1982 TRON. This beauty shines the most in the film's many action sequences; they become almost hypnotic and engrossing in their sparkling glory. It's simply beautiful.
The film also touts state-of-the-art 3D, and it does this with a clever gimmick reminiscent of the classic The Wizard of Oz. Just as Dorothy's Kansas was black and white, the real world of this film is 2D. It is only the digital dimension of The Grid that leaps out at you in flowing 3D. Just as with The Wizard of Oz, this contrast helps to underline the magic that dwells within the digital world.
The music used within the film also greatly adds to the aesthetic of TRON: Legacy. The film's action sequences are heavily enhanced with synthesized electronica created by the wizards of Daft Punk. What a perfect choice of artists for a film set in a digital fantasy world. Great music adds so much to a film, especially when it is one relying so much on gloss and shine.
TRON: Legacy plays itself rather straight, much like its predecessor. While the film is far from humorless, it also doesn't cheese it up with one-liners. It also doesn't really burden itself with what would be the expected romance between Sam and Quorra. By the end of the film, you get the strong impression that there is a future for the two, but never do we see the big kiss. TRON: Legacy spends most of its time playing to its strengths, and those are its extremely entertaining and colorful action sequences.
Where TRON: Legacy is lacking is really in the same place the original stumbled - the story and characters. The first film often didn't make much sense, and TRON: Legacy often doesn't either. The characters make spontaneous decisions that don't seem to have any real rhyme or reason, such as when Olivia 'takes herself out of the equation' by leaping out of hiding and getting caught by the bad guys. There was no reason for her to do this. It seemed like the script just called for her to get caught, and her jumping out of hiding was the best way to accomplish the goal. The film's namesake - the hero TRON himself - is also present, but he's been brainwashed by the evil Clu. He eventually breaks free of this brainwashing (please don't act surprised) so spontaneously that it is a wonder that it ever worked to begin with.
Similarly, characters don't seem to use their powers to their full abilities. Kevin Flynn has become something of an Obi-Wan of the digital world, and has a lot of tricks at his disposal; but why hasn't he been using them all along? It feels a little like Flynn could have solved the problem of Clu and stepped back out of the Grid before Bill Clinton had his second term of office.
To be fair, a strong plot and well curved character arcs were not the strength of the original film either. The first TRON won its audience through colorful charm and raw imagination, and was sustained through a 
nostalgia born of the early computer age. TRON: Legacy feels in every way in line with the legacy left by the first film, and - even with its plot holes and other flaws - is arguably much more sophisticated.
This isn't the last chapter, either. That's not to say that TRON: Legacy ends with a cliff hanger, as it certainly doesn't. But the setup for additional chapters is pretty obvious. If TRON: Legacy does well in the theater - and it will - then be ready for another colorful adventure into The Grid within a couple of years. I'm already ready.
Rating: (4 out of 5):
I'm glad you liked it. This seems IMAX worthy.
This is not a dream... not a dream. We are using your brain's electrical system as a receiver. We are unable to transmit through conscious neural interference. You are receiving this broadcast as a dream. We are transmitting from the year one, nine, nine, nine. You are receiving this broadcast in order to alter the events you are seeing. Our technology has not developed a transmitter strong enough to reach your conscious state of awareness, but this is not a dream. You are seeing what is actually occurring for the purpose of causality violation.